Measurements of Hypersonic Double Cone Flows with Shock Wave/Boundary Layer Interactions in the X3 Expansion Tunnel

Abstract

This paper presents the results from a series of hypersonic double cone experiments, conducted in the X3 expansion tunnel at the University of Queensland (UQ). The model was previously used and produced at California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and is a scaled model of the double cone model used by the Calspan-University of Buffalo Research Center (CUBRC). The data presented is a full transient set of surface heat flux, and surface pressure measurements along the axial length of the model as well as a full suite of tunnel data. These aim to help characterize the flow over the geometry by providing surface conditions, an accurate location of the boundary layer separation, the flow reattachment points and the general structure of the shockwave boundary layer interaction. The geometry of the X3 facility is also provided to give a more complete picture of the test conditions, an important consideration for numerical models. The outcome of this paper is to provide the most detailed experimental data to date and improve validation attempts of existing non-equilibrium thermochemistry codes.